Chas. T. Main Inc. was an engineering company of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

founded in 1893 and specialized in power generation—mainly hydroelectric power. In 1985, the company was bought by

Parsons Corporation Parsons Corporation is an American multinational technology-focused defense, intelligence, and infrastructure engineering firm. Founded in 1944, Parsons is headquartered in Chantilly, Virginia, and serves both government and private sector orga ...

History

It was founded in 1893 by Charles T. Main, an engineer for the textile mills of

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

. It was privately owned by its senior engineers, it being felt that this would leave decision making to those that knew the industry best. In addition to the then-traditional business of water and steam power, Main soon expanded into the new field of water resource engineering and

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

generation A generation is all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively. It also is "the average period, generally considered to be about 20–⁠30 years, during which children are born and grow up, become adults, and b ...

. In 1949 it began an association with the

United States Atomic Energy Commission The United States Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) was an agency of the United States government established after World War II by the U.S. Congress to foster and control the peacetime development of atomic science and technology. President Harry ...

working on projects relating to

plutonium Plutonium is a chemical element; it has symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is a silvery-gray actinide metal that tarnishes when exposed to air, and forms a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four ...

-based

nuclear reactor A nuclear reactor is a device used to initiate and control a Nuclear fission, fission nuclear chain reaction. They are used for Nuclear power, commercial electricity, nuclear marine propulsion, marine propulsion, Weapons-grade plutonium, weapons ...

s. It rose to become a worldwide player in the utility industries, providing many wide-ranging engineering services. For example, in the mid-1950s Charles T. Main was responsible for the building of a hydro-electric plant in Turkey ( Sarıyar Dam) and developing a plan to unify development of the water resources of the Jordan River Valley for its surrounding countries, Jordan, Syria, and Israel. Main also provided economic and consulting services including forecasting, impact, allocation, and feasibility studies. Former Main consultant John Perkins is author of the book '' Confessions of an Economic Hit Man'', which deals with the issues of

third world The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either NATO or the Warsaw Pact. The United States, Canada, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, the Southern Cone, NATO, Western European countries and oth ...

debt and

neo-colonialism Neocolonialism is the control by a state (usually, a former colonial power) over another nominally independent state (usually, a former colony) through indirect means. The term ''neocolonialism'' was first used after World War II to refer to ...

. In the mid 1980s, mismanagement led to the downfall of Main and it was bought by

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...

in 1985, which changed its name to Parsons Main, Inc. in January 1992.

References

{{Authority control Engineering companies of the United States Construction and civil engineering companies established in 1893 Technology companies disestablished in 1985 1893 establishments in Massachusetts 1985 disestablishments in Massachusetts Consulting firms established in 1893